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Should You Paint Your Walls with High-Gloss Interior Paint?

by Matt Jessee

Take a walk on the glossy side!

Typically, interior walls call for a sheen like eggshell, satin, or maybe semi-gloss in some cases. These are middle of the road sheens, providing a pleasant balance of shine, durability, and ease of application.

As a reminder, the glossier a paint sheen is, the more durable it is (and shiny). Unfortunately, these options are also much less forgiving of any imperfections in either your surface or your application technique, making it a tougher product to work with. For that reason, higher gloss paint most often finds a home on trim, molding, cabinetry, etc...

But not always.

Painting a Wall with High-Gloss Paint - What’s Involved?

As you can see in the photo above, high-gloss paint covering a whole wall offers a simply stunning look. The sheen makes the surface appear almost liquid, creating a depth that just isn’t possible any other way.

Here’s another example, used in a bathroom ceiling we recently painted.

So, how can this effect be achieved? Here are the steps that led to the dark walls you see above, outlined by one of our talented Crew Leaders.

Drywall Must Be a Level 5 Finish - This means it is flawless and smooth, often involving skim coating to make sure the surface is nothing short of perfect

2-3 Coats of Primer

Sand the Walls - In this case, we used a sanding block with 320 sandpaper

Wipe the Walls - There can’t be any dust left behind

Finish Coats - 2-3 coats of acrylic high-gloss applied with a sprayer

Should You Hire a Professional for Your High-Gloss Interior Painting Needs?

Yes, we definitely recommend it.

There really is no margin for error; one misstep will create a blatant flaw. It also is an extremely labor-intensive process, calling for very specific skills, tools, and experience.

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For over 15 years, MB JESSEE has been the leader among San Francisco painting contractors in painting fine homes and gaining customer trust in the entire San Francisco Bay Area. There is no better way to gain your trust than to promise our “No Questions Asked Guarantee.” It's our job to make sure you are always pleased with our workmanship, and we guarantee it.